Will Monsanto win? Washington state votes on GMO-labeling

It’s one of the biggest issues up for vote in Washington this Election Day, and it doesn’t involve casting ballots to bring anyone in or out of office. Instead, Initiative 522 would require that all genetically altered foods be labeled as such.

It may sound boring to many, but the results of Tuesday’s vote
will decide if Washington will become the first locale within the
United States to require that so-called “frankenfoods” be
properly labeled, an argument compelling enough to some that it
has attracted the attention of environmentalists, agriculturists,
corporations and trade groups far outside the state of only 6.9
million and propelled the localized election into the national
spotlight.

Should Initiative 522 be approved after the polls close on
Tuesday, other states across the US could take Washington’s lead
and work towards passing similar measures elsewhere to ensure
that citizens know that their food is even partially lab-made. If
approved, the initiative will require all foods containing
genetically modified ingredients to be labeled as a GMO by 2015.
Some opponents in the food industry fear the potential outcome,
though, and have dumped millions of dollars into a campaign that
could cost Initiative 522 a chance at passing.

Supporters of the measure had raised $8.4 million as of this
weekend, according to The Seattle Times, but the Washington Post
reported on Tuesday morning that a coalition of critics have
matched that amount nearly three times over and have invested
their $22 million towards telling Washington that mandatory
labeling on genetically-modified foods

Proponents of the initiative have received the bulk of their
funding — $5.8 million, according to the Times — from supporters
outside of Washington who believe the local outcome could pave
the way for similar laws to be considered elsewhere in the
country.

“This is really out-of-state interests fighting over how to
influence law in our state,” Matt Barreto, a political
science professor at the University of Washington, told the
Times.

Critics of genetically-modified, -engineered and –altered foods
largely attest that the absence of both strong regulations and
research should be enough to convince anyone not to consume
something that’s been made using a not-so-natural process. And
although upwards of 80 percent of packaged foods sold in the US
include GMO ingredients, labels aren’t required to advertise as
much, and much to the chagrin of skeptics who say there should be
more transparency involved with regards to what they’re eating.

“People have a right to know what is in their groceries,”
Elizabeth Larter, a spokeswoman for the Yes on 522 campaign, told
the Washington Post. “This is about letting you and me decide,
and not having this information concealed from us.. . .We should
be more transparent in our food system.”

Sarah Bryner, a research director at the national Center for
Responsive Politics, added to the Times’ Brian Rosenthal that
two-dozen states across the US are being used as testing grounds
of sorts for bold new initiatives that could be copied elsewhere.

“Certain states can be leaders on certain issues, and if you
are a person who’s passionate about an issue, you may see it as
being in your interest to support early adapters with the hope
that it may trickle down to your own state or other
states,” she told the Times.

Washington state already entered that category last year when
voters there — along with the residents of Colorado — elected to
legalize recreational marijuana in defiance of federal law. As
progressive as the Pacific Northwest state is, however, big-time
backing from corporate titans could cost Initiative 522 its
chance as success.

The Grocery Manufacturers Association and allies like biotech
giants Monsanto, Bayer and DuPont have spent at least $21 million
towards defeating Initiative 522, and if history is any
indication than it may pay off. Proposition 37 in California last
year would have required GMO labeling as well, and although
preliminary polls suggested it had a good chance at passing, a
media blitz bought by the likes of Monsanto and others at the
cost of over $45 million arguably helped the initiative ultimate
be defeated.

In early September, Politico reports, a poll determined that 66
percent of Washingtonians supported Initiative 522. The most
recent polling, however, found that support had dwindled down to
46 percent as of late October. With millions of dollars invested
in television and radio ads across the state in just the last few
days, though, the outcome is anyone’s guess before the polls
close late Tuesday.